habits

When we get out of bed in the morning immediately the mind likes to run down the list of things to do. Sometimes when the alarm goes off the immediate reaction can be one of stress and panic. One day we may feel important and excited if we, let's say, have a meeting with Warner Brothers to pitch our new TV series and, yet, maybe another day we feel dull or tired even at the idea of seeing a friend all the way across town. The zeal is there one moment and gone the next. What is happening? Life is one big mood swing.

The mind likes to keep us busy, throwing us into constant action and caught in emotional responses depending upon whether or not we have decided to enjoy the activity a hand. In actuality, we try to elongate the the moments that bring us pleasure and shorten the moments that bring us pain. But the truth of the matter is that we just become addicted to one state or another, pleasure or pain. (don't think we aren't addicted to pain there are many abusive relations out there) We think our response has to do with the object of our choosing but this is not necessarily the case. For example sometimes eating ice cream may bring about a very favorable or pleasurable experience in our being and yet at another moment in time when it is the dead of winter and we have a severe stomach flu ice cream may not bring about that once desired feeling of pleasure. Food in general when plagued with the flu will probable make us cringe. So, the objects of our desires, like ice cream, or a meeting with Warner Bros. are separate from the feelings that we have associated with them.

Some time these decisions we make and the occuring emotional response are made at such a rapid pace that we are fully unaware that we even made a decision. They are unconscious happenings. We don't even realize that once again we have landed right in front of the candy bowl at work and our hand is greedily digging for chocolate. Our awareness slips in the moment the chocolate hits our lips and we say to our selves "I can't believe it! I did it again, here I am eating the chocolate at work." Then we may spiral down the river of guilt and plead to ourselves that we'll be "better tomorrow". And the whole time have we have not even taken a small pause to ask ourselves consciously if we were even hungry. Moments like these happen all the time and the pattern becomes an unconscious habit.

So is your response to your alarm going off in the morning a habit? Could be! Regardless, think twice about who is running your life. Are you actually in charge? Do you make sound decisions from a space of calm or are your unconscious habits and responses running your life for you?

Try a new rout to work. Break a habit. Be aware.